Chronicles of the Lazyass Ninja
by Sir-Shun
Summary: Hiatus: A little fanfic about Shikamaru. How his carefree life affects most people around him. Rated T, cause you never know... If you think it's worth pursuing, let me know.
1. Chap 1: A New Friend

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter 1: A new friend, part one**

_Summary: a little fanfic about Shikamaru. How his carefree life affects most people around him._

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Disclaimer: I'm not Kishimoto, so… yeah that's about it.

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It was a beautiful day in Konoha. The birds were chirping, the sun was beaming, And Iruka was already past regretting being with kids while other chunning were happily risking there lives on some B-rank missions; obviously, a perfectly normal day. Ninja class had just finished leaving scarce pens and chalks in most rooms.

Iruka was gazing at the four students that gave him the most trouble since... ever actually. Kiba was just an annoying class clown with poor notes. Only he had poorer notes than most clowns he had laid eyes upon. Number 3 of the most problematic was choji. All he was doing in class consisted of eating, stuffing his face and failing the class. However it seemed he was influenced by number two: Shikamaru. That kid never did anything in class. Heck, the chuunin asked himself if the young Nara ever even wrote a word in is class, let alone held a pencil. And then there was the king. Nobody could act as foolishly as him... nobody could fail as miserably either. Uzumaki Naruto, the blond menace, had already failed the entrance exams and he was on the road to becoming the worst failure the academy had ever seen. Actually, he was tied with Shikamaru for that place. These four were what kept Iruka up at night. Not that they were monsters, but more that they seemed to waste their potential here, especially the first two.

So there he was after class stuck with what he dubbed: "The drop out 4". Once again, he tried to teach them the importance of today's lesson which consisted in concentration.

- Oi! Are you even listening to what I'm saying!?

- Of course I'm not! said the laziest of the group. That speech was boring.

Kiba chuckled approvingly.

- Yeah!! I won't need that stuff when I'll kick the enemy's ass, replied the energetic blond.

The last one just kept on eating his chips.

Iruka sighed, that was his fourth in less than two minutes. It seemed these kids had the particular talent squeezing every ounce of patience he had, and then some. Shikamaru knew that, and he knew that he had his sensei right where he wanted him. All that he needed was one more little push, which was brought by Akamaru's owner.

- Hey, Iruka-sensei, haven't you finished your preaching yet? I want to go home already!

- You guys aren't going anywhere! Detention for all of you!

- May I ask you what would happen if we don't show up? The lazy Nara had asked that question with a bored expression on his face.

- I'd fail of all you, that's what!!

- Oh, you mean besides the fact that we'd already fail classes due to insufficient grades?

- Well... Um...

_Checkmate, _the net wearing kid thought The future genins split and left, like this was all part of a well thought plan, leaving a surprised teacher looking right and left and letting go an incredibly weak "Hey, wait!" before giving up.

That said, a kind of sad smile appeared on his face as he sighed yet again.

_Shikamaru has a sharp mind. He's always the one who comes up with the way for them to leave. If only he was motivated... And then, there's Naruto... Somehow, he makes me think of myself at his age..._

It may sound like the drop out 4 had good chemistry. But they were all very independent. In fact, after the split, none of them bothered to look for the others. Kiba was strolling down the streets of Konoha, Naruto was somewhere in the city figuring out his next plan, and Shikamaru was walking along with Choji towards his favorite cloud watching spot. He just laid there gazing at the sky, a serious look on his face contemplating some mystery the only he could figure out. His friend went from watching the skies, to his friend, then looked around, and back again at the sky, all while snacking. Shikamaru didn't mind though, hearing his friend munching all sorts of snacks was becoming a habit to him.

- Shikamaru, I'm going to leave for awhile.

Though Shika didn't answer, Choji knew he had his attention

- I'm almost out of chips... I'll bring you some if you want."

- M'k.

With that said, he got up and left. Shikamaru listened to the muffled steps of his comrade for a while, and then went back to looking at clouds. Soon after, he heard footsteps. It didn't sound like Choji though. Those steps were too energetic for that. He didn't mind though, it's not like it was his spot alone: sometimes you could see someone taking a walk around this place. The scenery was beautiful, mind you. It's just that the genius preferred the ever changing shapes of clouds. However, today was particular: the sounds of footsteps stopped near him, very close to him in fact. Shikamaru sighed, for all he knew, it had to be Iruka-sensei, feeling the urge of lecturing him again. All he could figure out was the murmur of the wind.

_Oh well, he thought, As long as I'm not bothered... _wishful thinking.

- Hey, Shikamaru! said a voice that surprisingly belonged to the blonde drop out.

- Hey, he responded nonchalantly.

- I... um... see that you're alone... Where's Choji? He's _always_ with you...

- Went out to buy food...

- Ha! That's so like him. He must eat like a dozen every day.

The blonde went on when he noticed Shikamaru's lack of response

- ...Yeah. Oh! We sure did get Iruka-sensei good this time.

- I guess.

- Ha! I guess he'll never learn...

- I guess we'll never be ninja too...

- ...Oh.

Naruto was running out of subjects. His mind was racing, trying to find something else to say. If he didn't have something to say, Shikamaru would problably send him on his way. And he would be alone again... He was sick of it. The way no one seemed to acknowledge his existence. At least he was willing to talk, but for how long? He feared the worst.

- Naruto...

_Here it comes, _thought Naruto_... now he'll say that I'm annoying and that I should go away... or maybe he'll just ignore me..._

- ...If you don't have anything to say, sit down and shut up.

- ...Yeah that's what I... Huh?

Naruto, didn't know what to say, so he sat down and shut up. He didn't think it would be so simple to be near Shikamaru. He guessed that most people were right when they said this kid was pretty laid back. Still he didn't understand. _Everybody_ was avoiding him for a God forsaken reason, yet that guy talked to him casually, in his own way of course. From what he saw in school even talking was too troublesome for him. He wanted to ask him about that, but he was afraid of what would happen if he somehow gave him a reason to push him away. Finally, curiosity got the best of him:

- Ne… Shikamaru…?

- …

- Shikamaru!

- Yeah, Yeah! I hear you… Man, how troublesome.

- Oh! Sorry… Um… w-why are letting me hang out with you?

- _Naruto can't be that stupid, can he?_

_- _…That's what you wanted, right?

- Yeah, I know that. What I mean is; why don't you, you know… look at me like the others do…

- Oh yeah… I should, shouldn't I?

- Naruto couldn't believe it himself, but he nodded.

- Meh… too troublesome.

Naruto couldn't understand this guy, but he was truly grateful. How he had long for someone, anybody, to talk to him like was a human being. He kept silent for a long moment, finally sighing.

- Thanks Shikamaru.

- …

- I don't think I could've taken much more of being despised by everybody without a damn reason!

Shikamaru pitied him for a moment. _That guy had it rough since the moment he was born. I don't know why, but I think it's time SOMEONE cut him some slack. It's damn troublesome I'm the one who's got to do it though._

- My mom warned me about you. She said you were a monster…

- What!? Do I look like a monster to you!?

- No. But I just told you what I heard. Maybe that's why people don't like you.

- But I don't look like a monster, do I?

- How should I know? You must admit though, those marks on your cheeks aren't really normal.

- …I don't think I'm a monster… he mumbled, and then looked at Shikamaru. You know that, but you still stick with me?

_You_ are sticking with me, he corrected. But I don't care. As long as you don't try to kill me, I'm fine.

- …Thanks.

- Yeah, Whatever.

- I just wished that everybody could do the same.

- What good could that bring?

- I don't know... I guess I just want the whole town to acknowledge me…

- Well… for that I guess you have to become popular.

- …Oh! I know, I'll just make more pranks! That way they'll surely notice me.

- Huh, Naruto? I don't think that's a good idea…

- Why not?

- You want them to like you… not try to lynch you.

- Oh right, he said with a goofy smile scratching his head.

Shikamaru sighed, and they both kept silent for a moment. Suddenly, Naruto's eyes lit up.

- … I'll be the best, dattebayo.

_That's an interesting development__, though the lazy student._

- I'll be the best ninja ever! The strongest one, dattebayo! Shikamaru, who's the strongest ninja? He then let Shikamaru think about it for a moment.

- I guess that would be the hokage, he finally said.

- Then I'll be the next hokage! Not only that, I'll be the best this village ever known, dattebayo! I'll be the one to protect them, and… He paused. They'll have to acknowledge me.

- … I guess that means you won't be able to fail class anymore.

- Yeah, I guess. He grinned. But you won't either.

- Huh? That statement finally made Shikamaru open an eye.

- I know you're a genius, Shikamaru, dattebayo.

- Naruto, he said with a sigh _everybody_ could be considered a genius compared to you.

- Hey!! But seriously, you're like the smartest kid in class. I think you're even smarter than Iruka-sensei.

- W-when did you figure that out?

- About a month ago. Remember those girls? That weird game?

Shikamaru gasped. He never thought someone would have been spying on him at that time.

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_Shikamaru was taking a walk out in Konoha. Not that he wanted to; his mother had forced him to catch some fresh air. As he was walking, looking everywhere except in front of him, he bumped into a girl. She fell on her knees and started to cry. Fearing this could get troublesome, he helped her get on her feet._

_- You okay now?_

_- Um… I think so, thanks._

_He walked away pretty quickly after that. But he soon noticed that the girl was following him. He sighed._

_- Hey, what do you want now?_

_- Um… I'm sorry… I-I…_

_- __Oi, take it easy now… calm down. There. Now, what is it you want from me?_

_- __C-could you… solve this puzzle for me? She then handed him a Rubik cube._

_- __What's that? Isn't that some kind of toy? …Those things are hard to do no? Shouldn't you ask for an adult to help you out?_

_- __B-but, I'm too scared to ask an adult, and I have to do it… or else… nee-san… Her eyes started to water. _

_- __Ugh! Fine. How troublesome…_

_- __T-thanks", she said, her face lighting up._

_- __Yeah, yeah… _

_Shikamaru concentrated on the puzzle at hand. He toyed with it for a couple of minutes, trying to figure out how he could put the cube back to its original picture. He finally grinned, the puzzle completed in his hands._

_- That was fun. Here you go then… huh? Are you… OK?_

_Something that vaguely sounded like concern was coming from the young genius as the young girl was turning bright red. He didn't want linger here longer than he needed. He sighed._

_- __Here, he said, putting the cube in the girl's hands_

_- __huh? Ah… Thank you very much. The girl seemed to have finally snapped out of it._

_- Yeah, Whatever._

_With that said, he got back to his aimless wandering. That didn't last long though; he could still hear the footsteps of that shy kid behind him. He stopped._

_- __What? Clearly, he was getting annoyed._

_- __Hum, sorry… m-may I ask your name? She hung her head low while playing with her fingers._

_- __Wha…? Oh? My name's Nara Shikamaru… And you are?_

_- __My name's… Izumi Naoko… sorry…_

_- Sorry!? About what?_

_He didn't have to wait long to find out. He heard a "click", quickly looked down and saw to his horror that he was handcuffed to said apologizing girl._

_- __What. The. Heck!? Why did you do that for?_

_- __Ah… I'm very sorry, Shikamaru-san. You see… I have to find a smart boy and bring him to nee-san… that's what she asked._

_- __You didn't have to handcuff me… _

_**W**__**hy me? This too troublesome**_…_ The young boy was now really annoyed._

_- I'm sorry. I… I have to. I really don't want to. But nee-san is so mean! she said, almost crying._

_- __Yeah, yeah… you don't have to cry about it. You're not the clueless guy being dragged there against his will for god knows what reason… how troublesome_

_- I'm sorry! I-I…__ was she could mutter before she started to burst into tears._

_- __Oi! Stop crying please… you're going to get me in even more trouble._

_Indeed she was. The people standing by were starting to give the young Nara pretty expressive glares. __**Great, now they're starting to think I'm the bad guy... I'd better end this quick or I'll really be in trouble.**_

_- __Naoko-san, if you don't stop crying, I might not make it by your sister's in one piece. Sikamaru was slightly upset._

_- __Huh? _

_She stopped sobbing __and looked around. She let out an "Oh! Sorry!" and then dried her tears._

_He sighed._

_- Can we just go already? Let's get it over with._

_After a few more minutes of walking they ended up in a back alley of one of the higher class districts of Konoha. There they found a girl sitting by a table. On that table was some sort of board games with many pieces. She looked older than him, Maybe 12, he thought._

_- __What's that?_

_The new girl and Shikamaru both asked the question at the same time. It was for different reasons though; Shikamaru was intrigued by the board game. As for the other kid:_

_- __Naoko, you baka! What did I ask you!?_

_- __Y-you asked me t-to bring a smart boy…_

_- __Smart and __**cute**__ Naoko! And what you did bring me? That stupid brat!_

_- Oi!..._

_- __B-but, Hanori nee-san, he figured out the Rubik cube in less than five minutes._

_- __What!? Don't be ridiculous! No one could figure it out that fast. It must've been dumb luck._

_- __B-but Hanori nee-san…_

_**Jeez! What a troublesome girl!**__ Shikamaru really wished he wasn't here. But he still was curious: Why was he dragged here? What did that girl want with a smart and cute boy? What was that board game for? What kind of game was it? By the looks of it, that game looked like it was made with strategy in mind. He'd have to learn to play that game someday. He was quickly brought back to reality._

_- __Besides, he's too young! He's useless Naoko! U-s-e-l-e-s-s!!_

_- __Oi! Shikamaru thought that could be his chance to leave._

_- __What!? girl suddenly turned her attention to him, with one of those typical, girlish glares._

_- __Since I'm so useless, I can leave, right? You can take that thing off me, right?_

_He raised his hand, showing the handcuffs. By doing this, he dragged Naoko, who was beginning, to blush again. Suddenly, Hanori smirked. _

_- __You know what, Naoko? He's yours if you want._

_- __W-what? N-no! Don't talk like that! _

_She was furiously blushing.__ This only contributed to raise Shikamaru's eyebrow interrogatively. Hanori's grin became wider._** That's what I thought.**

_- Oh! He's yours alright! And you __**will**__ challenge him. Do I get myself clear?_

_- __Please Hanori nee-san! Don't make me do this._

_- __Naoko, we don't have all day… hurry up!_

_- I… I can't! Please! I beg you__" She was crying._

_- I'm not listening…_

_**Sheesh! What that's supoose to mean?**__ Odds were that he would soon find out… and that he wouldn't like it one bit. Naoko wept silently for another moment, she then walked towards the table. Shikamaru naturally followed. She set up the table along with the pieces, giving a piece of paper the one in front of her. Shikamaru started to read and quickly realized it was the rules for the said game._

_- …Shogi?_

_- __Yes, I'll let you five minutes to assimilate the rules._

_- …And then?_

_- __You'd better… you'd better win this game. Her voice was trembling. Big time._

_- And what happens if I don't win__"_

_She tried to hide a sob, but failed miserably. She tried to voice an answer: All she could do was open her mouth, close it and cry some more. Finally, Hanori broke the tension._

_- Ugh! I don't have time for this! Hurry up with this so you can look for another one!_

_- Since you can't seem to shut up, could you answer the question?_

_- Hmph! How rude! Well…_

_- What? I won't get free until I win this, right? How troublesome… _

_However the boy noticed that his question still wasn't answered._

_- __So? Are you going to answer or not._

_- __Fine, fine. Weither you win or lose, you'll be free to go. Should you lose though…_

_Shikamaru simply eyed her._

_- __You'll have to sign this._

_- __A contract?_

_Tthe lazy boy snatched the document and began to read... then furioulsy glared at Hanori. _

_- You're not expecting me to sign this are you!?_

_- __Well... if you lose, I won't give you this key until you sign it._

_- __I'm sorry, Shikamaru-san. Please don't hate me. _

_The girl was mortified, and Shikamaru couldn't believe it. Yet he had no choice; the only thing he could do was trying to memorize the rules and he only had…_

_- …3 minutes left Shika-kun!_

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**A/N:**** First fanfic… Actually I'm writing this because my sister wants me to… Anyways, if you liked it, a word would be nice; and if you don't well… leave something as well.**

**BTW: So… what the heck is that contract about? ****What do you guys think?**


	2. Chap 2: A New Friend II

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter 2: A new friend, part two**

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Disclaimer: me… not… Kishimoto. Not yet ¬¬

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_- __I know you're a genius, Shikamaru._

_- __Naruto, he said while sighing, everybody could be considered a genius compared to you._

_- __Hey!! But seriously, you're like the smartest kid in class. I think you're even smarter than Iruka-sensei._

_- __W-when did you figure that out? _

_- About a month ago. Remember the girls that gave you that dare?_

_Shikamaru gasped. He never thought someone would have been spying on him at that time._

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_Shikamaru was really wondering why he wasn't running away right now. __After all, he didn't have to play by that troublesome girl's rule. He could simply go get an adult or something. He found three reasons:_

_One: he didn't know what would happen if he did try to run away. Naoko was probably on his side, but she was still obeying her sister's order. She probably wouldn't like being pulled around. And if she really liked her sister, she could pretend __**she**__ was the victim. Not a very wise tactic, considering the stared he received a short while ago. Then again, Naoko could help him and this would be over in less than half an hour. Shikamaru sighed. He wasn't the kind of guy to bet on anything._

_Two: he really was interested by shogi. That game had "strategy" written all over it. Exactly what Shikamaru liked. He didn't get to test those skills often though: most other things involving strategy were war, studies, and other things the genius find amazingly dull. Besides, this was a challenge given by girls. To back down meant losing manly hood… according to him anyway._

_Three: he was lazy. End of story._

_Only one minute left, and Shikamaru had already memorized all the possible moves of all the pieces. He spent his last minute thinking of means of attack and defense. He closed his eyes and put his hands in a weird fashion._

_**What's he up to? Probably praying f**__**or some miracle... the poor guy**__ she mused. _

_- Time's up, Shika-kun!" She announced with her, oh so annoying voice._

_- __Yeah. Let's get this over with Said the boy with his everlasting bored expression on his face._

_- __W-will you go first or second, Shikamaru-san?_

_- Ladies first! H__e let go sarcastically._

_Naoko moved one of her pawns first, and so did Shikamaru. Two minutes later, Hanori could only stare in awe at the Shogi board in front of her. Not only the young genius played like he actually knew how, but he had put Naoko on the defensive. She was beginning to wonder if the boy was really a genius or if he cheated somehow. Looking at his face, one would suggest the later, and so she kept an even closer eye on him. As for Naoko, she was enjoying herself. She was a different person when she played: no trace of shyness whatsoever could be found. There aren't many kids in konoha that can play shogi on that level. Well, O.K. the __**only**__ child she knew could play shogi was her sister. She thought she would have to make some mistakes in order to let him win, but it was useless. Even more surprising was that as game went on, she found herself __**wanting**__ to beat him. That didn't help though; Shikamaru's play style was new, weird, and very effective._

_- __I thought you never played shogi before… she said with a smirk._

_- __I didn't even know that games like that existed, he replied,"but this is my kind of game. You're quite good at it too._

_- __Thanks, my father taught me… but I didn't learn right… seeing I'm having a hard time against a first time player. _

_- __Normally, I'd agree with you… beginner's luck, probably._

_- __You and I both know this as nothing to do with luck._

_- __Che. Whatever suits you. Mate in four moves, he stated, while moving is rook._

_- __Nani!?_

_- __Impossible! I don't see anything! said her sister in disbelief._

_Shikamaru couldn't help but show is grin when he let that bomb. He didn't expect what happened next. The part when they looked at him in surprise, then back at the game trying to figure out if he was lying or not was kind of obvious. __**They really look like sisters like that**__ he thought. The part where they looked at him again and couldn't stop staring at him was… kind of disturbing though. It was like they were hypnotized by something. Shikamaru stopped smiling._

_- __…What? Is there something on my face?_

_Both reacted awkwardly to Shikamaru's question: Naoko turned bright red and started mumbling a bunch of nonsense; Hanori turned her head around and snorted. But the boy could still see her cheeks reddening. __**Don't… try to understand girls. Girls are weird. Just look at your mother and Ino**__. He reminded himself. He sighed and waited patiently for the girl in front of him to make her move. He had to be patient indeed, because Naoko first had to stop blushing, blurb out a tons of what he guessed reminded him of excuses, and start to think straight again before she could focus on the game at hand. When she finally did, she took Shikamaru's rook with her silver general. Shikamaru's expression did not change. He placidly made his move._

_- __Shikamaru-san?_

_- __…_

_- __Huh… Shikamaru-san?_

_- __I heard you the first time, Naoko._

_- __Oh! she blushed. Sorry about that. She finally made her move. I'm really sorry about… you know… all this._

_- __It's not your fault, he answered bluntly; It's hers. The said faulty person simply snorted and looked in another direction. Your move._

_- __Please don't think ill of her. We don't have many friends to play with. _

_Shikamaru did not answer, but gave her __a look slightly different than usual. She thought of it as a "How come?" and continued. _

_- __Well, my father, as you might have guessed, is a professional shogi player. He's very well known countrywide and he thought of making this a family tradition. He hoped for his sons to continue that tradition…_

_- __So you're his "sons" hey? She nodded with a sad smile on her face. Man, how troublesome._

_- __You don't know the half of it. We spent most of our childhood indoors, trying to mesmerize shogi strategies. So you can clearly see why the few friends. Your move._

_- __I see… your move._

_The girl smiled __with a hint of sadness. In two moves, Shikamaru would lose. Whatever happened, she'd lose him. If she lost Shikamaru would be free. He'd leave, and she'd probably never hear from him again. Who would blame him? Being dragged here and playing a game against his will with rather serious consequences isn't what you would call a pleasant experience. If she won… she blushed at the thought, but she knew he would hate her for the rest of her life. That wasn't the result she was looking for either. She sighed. It was all Hanori's fault. But she was still grateful. If it wasn't for her though, she wouldn't even have met him in the first place. She was at loss, unable to decide what move to play. Finally, she decided. __**I'll win, and after that, I'll just break the contract. It's better that way.**_

_- __I'm sorry Shikamaru-san, but I really want to win this, she said as she moved her dragon. I promise I'll make t up to you._

_- __I don't like losing either, so I think I understand, but… he moved his golden general. Checkmate._

_It took Naoko a while to understand the situation. She looked for a way to put her king out of danger, but there was none. Her dragon was the only piece that could've helped her, but she moved it out of the way. __**Did he… play thinking I'd do that?**__ What if she didn't play like she did earlier, would it have still mattered? She looked closer at the board. There was another move the boy could have done to win._

_- __You…! You had two ways of winning!_

_- __Actually, when I said "mate in four moves", I had five ways of taking your king, depending on your moves…_

_- __No… way. said Hanori in disbelief. There's no way you could have beaten my sister on your first try._

_- __Well, I did. Can I have the keys now? enquired the young Nara, not without a deep expression of boredom._

_Naoko's feelings change__d a bit. She was as happy as she was sad, not to mention furious. She had lost to a first timer; talk about destroying your ego. Then again, he had won, so he was free to go… but then, she'd never see him again. She hoped maybe he'd forget about all that happened today and start over as friends. She was dying for a rematch, but it seemed that would never happen. Still she had an ounce of hope. At least until her sister asked her to move aside._

_- __W-what? W-why? She immediately reverted to her old shy self once the game was over._

_- Because… I'm playing him next._

_- __WHAT? He couldn't believe his ears._

_- Hanori nee-chan, y-you can't!_

_- __I can and I will, I have the key, remember?_

_- __You said you'd release me I won._

_- __I did… but I didn't say how many of those you had to win._

_- Tch! Troublesome wench!_

_- __Don't forget you have to agree to the contract if you lose._

_Shikamaru could see that she was blunt. He also noticed that she didn't look at him in the eye and that the tiniest tint of pink could be seen on her cheeks. Did she…? Nah, couldn't be it… could it? And yet, that would explain why she would suddenly want to challenge him herself._

_- __So, changed your mind about me being smart?_

_- …Shut up._

_They started to play as soon as the pieces were on their original places on the board. __Shikamaru clearly saw Hanori was on another level after her first five moves. Shikamaru stopped and closed his eyes, his hands in a weird pose. Both the Izumi sisters watched with interest. One was thinking the boy was meditating; the other one guessed the brat was using some weird magic, or trying to find a way to cheat. When he opened his eyes, his moves became more fluent, and the pace was quicker until…_

_- __You…! Admit it, you played before!_

_- What now? You're annoying._

_- __Shut up and answer me! When did you learn to play shogi? Who was your teacher?_

_- __I learned it… about 25 minutes ago, and that, he said, pointing at the rules, was my teacher._

_- __Like I would believe that! There's no way you could have learned to play this good that fast._

_- N-nee-san, w-what are you...?_

_- __Look, you baka! You're telling me some new guy in the world of shogi could figure that out!?_

_Naoko took a closer look at the board. Hanori's side of the board was offense oriented, as usual; nothing surprising there. As for Shikamaru's board, well, from what she could tell, it was pretty defense oriented. Pretty good defense actually. The way all his pieces were placed reminded her of the shogi lessons she had with father. It vaguely looked like… "No, it couldn't be!?" The pieces weren't exactly in the same places, and some of them were switched but there was no doubt it._

_- __T-that's the Yagura castle._

_- The ya-what castle?_

_- __The Yagura castle, you dolt! That's only the most advanced defensive position in shogi! Nothing special really! She tried to calm herself. Any ideas on why you were able to perform such a feat without knowing of it, huh? _

_Her face got dangerously close to the boy._

_- __Great minds think alike, said the boy who was starting to become slightly annoyed?_

_- __Don't give me that "great minds think alike" crap! You lied! You knew of shogi, admit it!_

_- __Whatever. If you think I know the what's-his-name castle defense strategy even though I probably did it all wrong and I didn't even know its name to begin with, it's fine with me."_

_- __H-he's right, Hanori nee-san, If you look at it closely, It's similar to the Yagura castle, but it's not it. Besides, the Yagura is an amateur level defense move._

_- __He's… doing it on purpose. I'm sure he his._

_- __Sure, he said sarcastically, I made errors on purpose so I could lose earlier and therefore sing the contract easier. But… wait a sec… I don't want to sing that stupid contract. That must really be a silly move, don't you think?_

_- Oh, shut it!_

_- __Can we please continue this game? I want to go home before supper._

_And so they did. Since the genius's defense wasn't quite like the __Yagura castle, it was much easier to break through. Hanori took advantage of that, but it was all part of the boy's plan. He easily captured many of Hanori's pieces, broke the poor excuse for a defense line she had, and quickly ended the match._

_- __That's it! I officially hate you! Shouted an exasperated preteen _

_- Charming… Can I go now?_

_- __Grr! Here, I hope you choke with your supper!_

_Silence were his last word. He took the key and left, hands behind his head. __**There he goes**__, thought Naoko. She had the urge to follow him, but she was too shy. Besides, considering what happened the last time she did, she didn't think he'd be happy to see her again. She had lost a very nice, albeit, accidental chance to have a friend. And she had her sister to blame. Sometimes she wondered what went through her head to be so mean to everyone. Were all big sisters like that?_

_- __W-why did you have to do that, Hanori nee-san? Y-you didn't even l-like him in the first p-place._

_- __So? It's not like I changed my mind or anything. He's still a brat. I… hum… just wanted to beat him, that's all!_

_- __Sure, you did. She mumbled. Why'd you try to make him sing the contract then?_

_- What did you say?_

_- M-me!? N-nothing!__ Said Naoko, blushing._

_- __Good! That's what I thought._

_- __He… c-could have been our f-friend…_

_- __Yeah, like this could have ever happened! said Hanori. She turned away, leaving her sister clueless about what she thought of it. _

_- Anyways, I don't need friends, I need a boyfriend! So go and fetch me another boy! And this time, I want him to be older, got it?_

_- Yes, nee-san._

_Being the obedient sister she was, Naoko left. Her head was hung low, thinking about what could've been the start of a great friendship, not to mention the awesome shogi matches she could have played. In fact, she was so self-absorbed that she didn't see the boy leaning on the wall just out of the back alley, waiting for her. She didn't hear him cough either, which only annoyed the young man. He sighed, and finally he yelled. _

_- Oi! Don't ignore me, baka!_

_- Uh!? Shi-Shikamaru-san?__ he didn't answer. For the answer was quite obvious. Why are you here?_

_- __Well, you forgot to bring back to the market place. I have no idea where we are._

_- Oh! S-sorry about that.__ She took the lead. Shikamaru simply followed._

_- __So… When and where we should meet next time?_

_- __M-meet? y-you and m-me? said the blushing girl, suddenly stopping. W-why? The boy snorted, like that answer was also easy to figure out. S-shogi? she asked in disbelief._

_- __Of course, Shogi! What did you expect? _

_She completely flushed. Shikamaru decided he didn't need an answer to this question._

_- __B-but the way nee-san acted, I t-thought…_

_- __Forget about it! Shikamaru clearly didn't want to think about it anymore._

_- __S-so… does that mean we're… she gulped friends?_

_- __Hnm? I guess so. Hurry up! I think I'm going to be late._

_- A-Ai!_

_Naoko couldn't happier. She quickly thought of a place her sister never past by and gave Shikamaru the directions while leading him to the market place. _

_- I think I'm fine here, thanks._

_- O-okay__" There was a moment of silence_

_- __… What is it? Shikamaru finally asked._

_- __Hum… is it okay, if… I call you Shikamaru-kun?_

_- Uh… yeah, I guess._

_- __W-well then, goodbye Shikamaru-kun._

_- Yeah… I'll see you around._

_Shikamaru had only made a couple of steps when he heard Naoko's voice again: "E-excuse me sir… would you mind solving this puzzle for me?" He sincerely pitied the boy, as he had no idea what he was getting himself into, and went on his way. Needless to say, he was late at home that day, and was scolded by his mom._

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_So, Naruto was there the whole time eh__? … Wait a sec! He understood that only a month ago!? But those things happened nearly __**a year**__ ago!_ A confused smile appeared on his lips. _Oh well, it __**is**__ Naruto we're talking about._

- So, you saw?

- Yeah, I was rooftop hopping when I saw you with those girls.

- And you think I'm a genius because of...

- Uh… well I heard when she yelled you made a castle in the game board.

- So…? What does this have to do with me being smart?

- I dunno. I think you have to be pretty smart to beat people at their own game.

- It wasn't _their_ game, it was _a_ game.

- It was a… I heard a strat… strat…

- A strategy game, Naruto.

- Right, it was a strategy game.

- Yes, it was a strategy game.

- It was a… difficult strategy game.

- Yeah, it was a difficult strategy game. Shikamaru started to be annoyed.

- It was a difficult strategy game you never played before. He said with a grin.

- Yeah, it was a… _touché_. _I can't believe the guy got me. Naruto of all the people._ So, I'm smarter than most? And…?

- That means you could graduate any time you want to, dattebayo!

- And what if I don't?

- Then I'll annoy you until you pass, dattebayo!

- Right, like you could annoy me… won't you be too busy trying to pass the genin exam yourself?

- Ahh… well…

- See? So just forget about it.

- Naruto? What are you doing here?

- Oh? Choji! There you are!

- What are you doing here?

- Well, I'm just hanging around.

- I see… want some?

Choji did something unexpected, at least to Naruto. He offered him a bag of chips. Shikamaru lazily opened an eye to observe. It probably was Choji's "initiation". It was simple: Choji gave you a bag of chips, and you reacted. Depending on that he could either befriend you or stomp over your dead body. Naruto didn't know what to think of it. He knew for a fact that he must had an eating disorder, because he ate like there was no tomorrow. So eating the entire bag of chips was definitely a bad idea. On the other hand, that was a nice move of him to offer those chips. It would be rude to refuse. And so he decided. He took the bag, ate a couple of chips then gave back the bag to Choji. It must have been the right choice, because the engrossed blond smiled, while the dark haired genius snorted, closing his eye. He didn't understand it just then, but he was acquainted.

Since then, it wasn't surprising to sometimes see three persons lying on the grass, saying nothing. One was enjoying the clouds; the other one the scene; the last one, the company.

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**A/N****: Comments, stuff, reviews, stuff, flames, ANYTHING!? I need to know, please.**

**BTW: have you found what the contract was about yet?**


	3. Chap 3: Dreaded paperwork

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter 3: Dreaded paperwork**

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Disclaimer: I'm not Kishimoto, so… yeah that's about it.

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The start of one final week of paperwork quickly came by. It consisted of various things: strategy, diplomacy, stealth tactics, theories, chakra and jutsus… everything they needed to become accomplished ninjas. Two days prior to the fated exam, Iruka decided he'd have the class work on mission planning, as missions would soon be pretty much all that they'd be doing. But since he wanted them to actually learn something, especially the "dropout 4", he decided to put them in teams of two.

- It's simple actually; I'll pair up the best with the worst.

Half the class didn't understand what he meant by that; the other half couldn't figure out how he was going to operate. As for Shikamaru, he didn't like where this was going, having a general idea of what would happen.

_He probably wants to put the top of the class, with the dead lasts. That would leave me… _He scanned the class_ with "fangirl Sasuke". Heck no!! There couldn't be anything worse than that!_

He had nothing against Uchiha sasuke. The boy was smart, silent, arrogant, easily bored, seeing all this junk as a simple waste of time. Only qualities in the eyes of the pineapple head. No, the problem wasn't the top of the class, it resided in the never ending squeals of fangirls in a 2 meter radius around the prodigy; hence the nickname. It was a major pain preventing him from doing the most basic and important stuff to him: Think. While in school he thought about lots of things; the secret of the Akimichi clan preventing them from food poisoning, why school was so boring, the best shogi strategies, how to skip the housework today… important stuff, really. The screeches and the would-be-subtle-but-obviously-is-not giggles made Nara's mind go numb from the incredibly fast decrease of I.Q. Needless to say that didn't give him a high opinion of girls in general, especially when he had Ino for acquaintance.

- The first team will be… Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke.

Shikamaru's feelings of pure relief were expressed by a subtle, yet elegant yawn. He had forgotten that he and Naruto had the same grade. He watched as Naruto and Sasuke both eyed their teacher to see if he wasn't joking, then Naruto complained about having to spend a whole hour working with the Jerk behind him. Bad move. What happened next only reinforced the feelings Shikamaru had towards girls: It started with Hinata coming in front of their teacher to ask him about a better way to make the teams. While they were discussing, two of the tallest girls of the class made their way in front of Naruto's desk, to have a chat, erasing the blonde from Iruka's view. Naruto then found himself surrounded by the rest of the very unhappy girls, with Sakura and Ino right next to him. Next thing he knew, he was pummeled from every side, his cries for help nullified by the loud laughter of the two tallest perpetrators. It ended as suddenly as it started, just before Hinata had finished talking to Iruka. Moments after Hinata regained her seat, the chuunin finally noticed the poor beat up Naruto.

- Naruto? What happened to you?

- I… I tripped.

- Sheesh! Only you can look seriously beat up for the stupidest things…

The fox kid wanted to tell him what happened, but he couldn't. Would he even believe him in the first place? Half the class were still wiping there eyes and pinching themselves to see if it wasn't a dream. Anyways, the general opinion of the boys was that girls were scary. Some of them had other things in mind though: Choji and Kiba acknowledged that these kunoichi knew how to fight; Shino and Shikamaru were mentally praising the flawless execution of plan thought up in such a short time; Sasuke… made a mental note that when he'd restore the Uchiha clan, it would _not_ be with anyone from his class.

After making sure Naruto would still be able to attend the class, Iruka made his second pairing.

- The Next team will consist of… Haruno Sakura and Nara Shikamaru.

How did the saying go: "Out of the fire into the frying pan"? Shikamru could only groan. He had expected he'd be hearing girls fawning over Sasuke, but not at less then one foot from his precious ears. Well at least the kunoichi seemed to be as unpleased as he was. This was going to be a very pleasant experience…

From the Sakura's perspective, things weren't going well either. She had wanted to be paired with Sasuke. Badly. Of all of his admirers she was the most passionate, fervent, and all the other synonyms she could think of. And she had many. Now, not only she wasn't paired with Sasuke, he was teamed up with the dead last, the clown nobody found funny: Naruto. For a brief moment she wondered if the fact that Sasuke was teamed up with such an annoying person was better than to leave him under the care of another girl. She shrugged: Sasuke wouldn't care if it was a girl, Sasuke would be faithful and wait for her because she was the only he truly desired… he just didn't notice yet. She knew this had as much chance of happening as winning the lottery ten times in a row, but she kept hope, for such is the simple mind of a fangirl. Pathetic? Yes, very.

After glaring with all her might at Naruto, like half of the class, the pink headed girl observed her new teammate. He had nothing to convince her that she could depend on him: his grades were as awful as Naruto, which was a feat, considering that Naruto had the record for lowest grade; He had no air of grandeur, no confidence, not a glimpse of intelligence at first shot; And worst of all, he wasn't even as remotely cute as Sasuke-kun. At least he was pretty easy to read: he looked like a lazy bum, and acted like one too. She was sure that for this work, she would have to work alone. She took a deep breath, and moved to sit next to the Nara boy, certain that he wouldn't have bothered to move. To her surprise he gave her a disapprobative look.

- What?

- You shouldn't have come here.

- Why?

- You're invading my sleeping space. Then he shrugged, and went back to is favorite napping position.

Sakura couldn't believe the nerve of the boy. He didn't even hide his intention of skipping the task at hand. She still tried to decide if the fact that the insult was half backed was more infuriating or not. But before she could argue -or smack him-, the teacher had already placed the task on Shikamaru's desk. Sakura reluctantly ignored the comment and started to work on the said assignment. Meanwhile, the teacher mentioned that the work would have to be completed in less than one hour, but that this hour would consist of two thirty minute periods split by a 15 minute break. It seemed that much time wasn't needed, because to the pink head's disappointment, the work looked rather easy; it consisted of the capture of an enemy high ranked officer located in a remote mansion. The plan of the mansion, as well as the traps, the number of shinobis and their emplacement, everything was detailed. The task was to find the most efficient way to complete the mission using a team of four of the several kinds of ninjas. There were many types, but nothing prevented a student from choosing two or three of the same type.

The answer was obvious, so Sakura spent about ten minutes thinking about how she would put the answer to words and by the time the break was announced, she was lost in the mindless gazing of the Uchiha genius. Meanwhile, the black haired lazy bum didn't move an inch, but still noticed that Sakura team (he didn't really consider himself part of the team since he had 0 part in the work), the Naruto – Sasuke team, and the Shino – Choji team had already finished with the task. The others were still discussing the most appropriate maneuver to complete the mission. Normally, he wouldn't have notice any of this, as he would be sleeping, but the pencil pushing followed by the loud sighs of his "teammate" was too noisy for his comfort. So while looking around, he pondered on the crucial question of the day; was Hinata involved in the plot to beat up Sasuke? He still wasn't sure when the people started to exit the room. He yawned loudly, thinking that he would finally be able to rest. As his eyes started to shut, he felt something grabbing his collar. Suddenly, he was picked up and was facing none other than the said source of the sleep preventing noises.

- You…! Clearly, she was holding him responsible for something. Her eye was starting to twitch as well; that didn't sound good.

- Yes?

- You didn't lift a single finger to help me. I did all the work!

- So? The noise you made crushed all the hopes I had of catching some Zs. I guess we're even.

- How dare you even think we're even after that!? If I my grades aren't as good as Sasuke-kun (Her whole expression changed at the mention of that name, but it quickly came back to its original fury) I'll make sure that you'll never want to sleep again, you hear me?!"

- Troublesome girl.

- Why you…!

- Considering my current grades, I don't think my intervention would have changed the final result in any way… at least, any positive way.

Her curled up fist dropped when she processed his reasoning, then she tried to retort with a valid argument, but couldn't. If he really was as dumb as Naruto, there's no way he could have helped her with this. Even having him write the answer would be hazardous. "And besides, don't tell me you weren't expecting this." said the boy, to finish her off. She finally dropped Shikamaru, who landed on his desk with a thud, and decided to go sit outside during the break. Getting mad and arguing with her teammate had totally drained her. As for him, he started by massaging his chin, which had hit the desk pretty hard. Then satisfied by the way he had gone out of this mess; he decided to reward himself with a well deserved rest – which lasted ten seconds. Suddenly, he was picked up and was facing none other than everybody's lovable dead last. _Whoa… major déjà vu._

- What the heck are you doing!?

- Uh… I'm trying to sleep? _And what's up with everybody? It must be the "Let's bother Shikamaru nonstop" day._

- I saw and you Sakura-chan just now!

- … And?

- You didn't lift a finger to help with her. She did all the work!

- Yes, Naruto. Thanks for repeating exactly what she said. Now I'm 100 sure of what I was doing for the last thirty minutes.

- But you're a… but he was quickly cut by the lazy student.

- Be careful about what you're going to say out loud, idiot!

- You're a genius! You should have helped her! he whispered so loudly Shikamaru thought he was talking normally. Fortunately, the rest of the students had already left the classroom.

- So? I'm lazy! What else did you expect?

- If the grade your team gets for this work isn't at least an A…

Shikamaru shrugged; yet another empty threat.

- I'll let your mom know how much of a good-for-nothing genius you are.

The boy's whole body shivered at the simple mention of his mother, when he understood what that threat would mean to him, he almost entered a state of panic.

- Like that will do anything… he said. But he lacked confidence, and Naruto didn't miss his shuddering.

- Looks to me it's a very effective threat.

- Hah! Like she'll ever listen to you!

- I'm not the one who's going to tell her.

- What!? _Choji, you traitor! _He had wondered how Naruto knew about his mom.

- So?

- Ugh! Fine, I'll think of something.

- You'd better.

Another drop, and once again Shikamaru was left rubbing his sore chin. What did he ever do to deserve this? Not only he had to endure one hour of torture consisting of hearing Sakura making what he dubbed fangirl noises at Sasuke, but now he actually had work, which required him to lift a pencil and write in class, thing he hadn't done for _three years_. And if that wasn't enough, He had to write his answer before the break was over, because Sakura would never let him write anything on this paper – he knew he wouldn't let himself write on that considering the circumstances. He could summarize all that in two words; "How troublesome."

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	4. Chap 4: Interesting Results

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter 4: Interesting Results**

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Disclaimer: I'm not Kishimoto, so… yeah that's about it.

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Shikamaru was in deep trouble. For the first time since he entered the academy, the young genius would have to use a pencil to get out of a mess. He was to make sure that he and his teammate Haruno Sakura had a grade of at least "A" for their work or he would have to face the wrath of Naruto. Now, getting beat up didn't sound appealing to the pineapple head, but that wasn't the kind of threat that would move the heart of this Nara. No, the troublesome situation laid in the way the blonde could cause a chain reaction leading to Shikamaru's mother being on his case for ever. But only having to write the answer was only half the problem; He had to make it so his teammate didn't meddle in his work, which left him a dozen of minutes to save his skin.

The young Nara started by taking a look at what Sakura wrote. He had to admit she knew what she was doing. Her strategy was practical and efficient. _I wonder if she'd make a good shogi player_. He thought that only playing against Naoko would get boring in the long run, but quickly shot down the thought; this wasn't the time to think about shogi. He then pondered on the question for awhile, erased Sakura's answer, wrote is own and then put the Sheet on the Iruka's desk. By the time he had done so, the students were starting to re-enter the classroom. The pink haired student made her appearance instants after the Uchiha's. It seemed she had completely forgotten about the work and the head ache her teammate was giving her; at least until she noticed the spot were she had left her work was now empty. She rapidly marched towards the Nara's desk and slammed both her hands on the hard wood, while lowering her head to the level of the startled boy. They both glared at each other. After a slight moment of silence, Sakura exploded.

- What do you think you're doing!?

- I could ask you the same question. With a scowl on his face

- Me!? You're the one who lost the work sheet!

- Lost!? Damn girl! Can't you see it's on the teacher's desk!?

- Why did you put it there? I wasn't done with it!

- The sheet I put there looked pretty complete to me. Geez, I don't believe you broke my nap for this._ Again._

Once again Sakura couldn't argue back. She started walking back to her desk, a little relieved. Yet what Shikamaru said didn't sound right in her mind. She changed direction and went to Iruka's desk. A short glance at her paper was more than enough to tell her something had changed, as she clearly couldn't recognize her own writing on the sheet. She tried to reach for the paper but the teacher's hand was faster. Iruka knew Sakura knew about the rules, so he didn't bother explain that once a work was brought back to a teacher it could not be changed under any circumstances. Defeated, Sakura walked towards her place in a foul mood. Apparently Shikamaru had written his own answers on the paper and gave it back so she couldn't change them. As for why, she had no idea; but she was sure her grades would suffer from it, and so would her teammate.

Minutes passed slowly. One by one, the teams brought their work and separated. Most of them were nervous, some of them, anxious, only a few were confident. Surprisingly the last team to send their work to the teacher was Naruto and Sasuke's. The general consensus of the class was that Naruto had slowed Sasuke down. But even then, the whole class had finished 15 minutes before the time limit, which permitted Iruka to correct the answers of all the teams before the end of the school day. As the class was ending, the chunnin asked the teams to meet in front of him so he could hand out their work. Usually, when Iruka gave work back, he would not comment on grades, but today was different, since missions were an important part of a ninja's life.

I'm very proud of you today: most of you stood to the basics and chose a four men team consisting of a ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu, and medical specialist. While that type team has its weaknesses, it can tackle any situation, including this one. I must also mention Sasuke's original use of the genjutsu specialist as decoy. For that, the team gets an "A".

When this was heard, every half of the class room started to squeal of joy, however Sasuke let out a "Hn". The screeching stopped abruptly; when the Uchiha made that sound it meant that he was not in a good mood, compared to his snicker of superiority he always had when obtaining the best grades of the class (which happened all the time). Most of the class though that he wasn't satisfied with the results, even though he had a notably higher grade than everybody for this work, but raven haired prodigy knew it had more to do with the fact that the praise from Iruka had to go to Naruto, because it's was his idea. And the boy had to admit it was a pretty darn good one too. The teacher continued with Sakura's team, his tone seemed different: "Frankly I didn't expect this of you". At the mention of her name, Sakura flinched, but before she heard the rest of his remark she started to shake her teammate violently, cursing him for pretty much everything wrong in the world. If her grades were low, Sasuke wouldn't notice her; if she wasn't noticed by Sasuke, she had no reason of becoming a ninja; if she had no reason to become a ninja, she had just wasted the last years of her life doing practically nothing. Meanwhile, Shikamaru was desperately fighting for air. It seemed being shaken violently and at ridiculous speed, prevented him from breathing. At that point he wondered if it would have been better to be strangled instead.

- Ha… ru… no… stop… I… can't…

- You! Why did have to go and do that! You messed up everything! Aren't you even listening to all the trouble you've put me through!?

- For their brilliant work Sakura and Shikamaru deserve an A+ !

The pink head was still in the midst of a 2nd degree murder when all of her classmates looked at her in awe. When she finally registered what her teacher had said, she dropped the boy, who gasped and coughed thanking the heavens he was still alive. The girl then politely asked Iruka to repeat what he had just said, because she naturally didn't believe a single word her ears had processed. The teacher cleared his throat, and with a drop of sweat resumed his explanations. "As I was saying, while most of the class though of using an all-around team to perform the mission with a 80 success rate, your team picked a trap specialist instead of a taijutsu specialist, and the plan applied using the team's strength ups the success rate to nearly 90. You guys thought out of the box and chose a team that was perfect for this mission. That's why you deserve this grade.

Haruno still couldn't believe it; A+! A better grade than Uchiha Sasuke! Nobody ever got that in class since… ever actually! She nearly cried of joy and shared her happiness with Shikamaru by shaking the boy who had just gotten up as vigorously as before. No need to mention that this was torture for him and that he wished that he could have just stopped breathing earlier. Note that the fact that she was squealing incoherent things at about 1 inch of distance didn't help.

- We did it Shikamaru!

- Damn… wo… man… I… need… air… _Wait, she actually knows my name?_

- An A ! Don't you realize what it means?

And she dropped him as suddenly as she picked him up when she realized herself. There's no way that the raven haired handsomeness wouldn't notice her now. She even had her step ahead of Ino; she would never recover from this. She approached the Uchiha, expecting him to congratulate her and comment on her awesome paper: she forgot who she was dealing with. The look Sasuke gave her, almost made her want to hide on underground. _Why would he be so angry?_ Strangely, only the guys had figured out that characteristic of the Uchiha; he hated anyone weaker than him, and he absolutely loathed anyone better than him; charming fellow, really. Since she was a girl, she didn't understand anything at all. The fact that the bell rang confused her even more. Then it hit her; this would never have happened if it wasn't for her grade higher than his. She then looked for the responsible, but he was nowhere to be found.

Shikamaru had played it smart and decided to crawl his way out of the classroom, the idea of being scrambled a third time not very appealing. He also made sure to leave with the paper in hand: he didn't want to do any more work. Not only he knew her teammate was mad at him, but he figured Naruto would be as well: it seemed he had a thing for the pink head. If there is anything worse than a girl, it's probably an idiot falling in love. The pineapple head made a quick rundown of what happened today: he had decided to help someone and this resulted in having potentially three people wanting him dead: Sakura, for destroying the nonexistent chance she ever had of getting Sasuske – People can dream, can they? Naruto, who'd probably think he did it on purpose… even though _he_ was the one to ask him to at least get an "A"; And Sasuke, if he ever discovered who was the author of the "A + " paper; Being beaten by Sakura was one thing; being outsmarted by the deadlast would be really humiliating. Later, at his favorite resting spot, he came to a conclusion.

_Being lazy and not doing anything would have actually saved all the pain and trouble I went through._

Shikamaru swore to himself that he'd never do anything for anyone ever again… well, expect for his mother.

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	5. Chap 5: Bluff

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter 5: Bluff**

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Disclaimer: I'm not Kishimoto, so… yeah that's about it.

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The day following the dreaded paperwork, Sakura waked up early. She wanted to set things straight with Shikamaru, because she had no idea what actually happened yesterday. Yes, she got an A, and yes, she understood that Sasuke didn't particularly like someone being smarter than him, but something else was bothering her: It was her teammate. How much did the boy change the paperwork to have that grade? Was it all pure luck? _Fat chance!_ She thought. But then why the low grades? Was he really that smart? Was he smarter then Sasuke? Was that even possible!? As she hurried to school, she pondered and analyzed every known aspect of her former teammate; it wasn't much. He was lazy, and he was rude; that was about all she knew of him. In fact, that was about all of the class known of him. She remembered that some of her friends from the opposite sex said that aside from Choji and Ino, nobody talked to him. And by the way Ino rarely spoke of him; she figured her friend didn't know much about the elusive boy either. It seemed the only way she'd ever go to the bottom of this was to actually talk to him.

She realized she arrived too early as soon as she stepped on the school grounds. Not even the teachers were here. She began to realize she was apprehensive about this. You could almost say she was worried. What would she do if he was smarter than her? Because that was really what was troubling her: how could a good for nothing bum like him be better than her? She had passion and a motive, albeit a stupid one; he had… well nothing actually. It seemed that he didn't even know why he was here in the first place. The thoughts stalked Sakura all the way into the class room where she quietly sat in her place, waiting until finally she opted for some studying.

Surprisingly, Shikamaru was the next to enter the classroom after her; not so surprisingly, he totally ignored her, went straight for his desk and just dropped, like dead. She didn't expect any form of politeness from him, but a simple "hey" would have been nice. She shrugged the urge she had to punch him in the face and decided that now was the perfect chance for discussion. She walked towards the Nara's desk and coughed politely, to divert his attention. No response.

- Pardon me, Shikamu-san?

- Hmm? The kid sounded tired.

- Ah… it's about the paper you filled out yesterday. I really must thank you; because of you, we got the best grade of the class. The problem his that I didn't get to look at what you wrote, so I have no idea what I need to study to improve. Is it okay with if I borrowed the paper, please?

Upon closer inspection, The Nara kid was sleeping, his head resting on his arm. You could even hear the subtle and even breathing, which only served to infuriate the girl. Veins popped out as she started to lose total control of herself. _Forget politeness; this guy deserved a good whooping_. As the other Sakura was taking over, a loud "SHANNARO!!" was heard, effectively jolting Shikamaru out of his sleep. It was too late though. He could only think one thing while watching the pink haired student in front of him: impending doom. He had one question however: was this some kind of blind rage he had no way to escape from or was there anyway to get out of this mess – alive, that is? The answer came rapidly.

- The paper!

- The paper? You're telling me you woke me up and you want to kill me for the sake of that stupid paper?

Actually it wasn't _just_ a paper for the young Nara. From what he understood about the girl in front of him, giving her the paper meant telling her he was smart. The risk was also high that she'd figure out that he was more than just smart. Not that he particularly cared that she knew about it, but it would mean that Ino would learn about the paper as well. And once any kind of news reached Ino… well might as well say that the whole village would know about it. That could only mean one thing: Her mother would know. For Shikamaru, his mom was trouble times 100. He could only imagine how much trouble this would escalate to if he didn't act fast. Hopefully, he'd found something before long. Of course that though of process only lasted an instant, considering anything longer would make him suffer a swift, yet painful death.

- Look can't we just forget about the paper and…

- SHAAA!!... Sakura's war cry and angry glare advised otherwise.

_- I guess not._ Fine, fine here you go.

Shikamaru, handed the paper out of heaven knows where at blinding speed, probably thinking that it would be best to actually work for the rest of his days and be alive the few moments of peace he'd have left. He tried to utter something like "troublesome girl", but the glare he received just then convinced him against it. Instead, he sighed loudly and let his head rest on his arm, his mind franticly searching for a way out of this; preferably alive and without his mom getting wind of this. As he was forming and throwing out ideas in his head, he suddenly realized that Sakura didn't look like she was going to kill him anymore. He was right; at first Sakura was indeed thinking of ending the rude bum's days short after confirming her theory, but the thoughts were quickly washed away after re-reading the part Shikamru had written. This wasn't at all what she expected.

- This… this…

- Yeah…?

- This… you wrote this?

- What? Is something wrong with the spelling?

- This…

- Out with it, you annoying girl! I was trying to sleep, you know.

- Shikamaru-san, what you wrote is brilliant!

- Pardon?

- How did you figure that out?

- Dumb luck, I guess.

- What!? And you're expecting me to believe that!?

Actually, Shikamaru didn't lie when he said that; he truly believed that he had gotten the right answer by luck. Though he knew he was somewhat smarter than most, he had a certain conception of school. He couldn't conceive that he'd be able to do something right in the academy without studying, hence his remarkably poor grades. Studying was a hassle; as was this girl.

- I'm definitely sure this is no fluke, Shikamaru-san!

- And don't call me that! Shikamaru-san sounds so troublesome.

- Huh?

- Just call me Shikamaru, like everybody else, and be done with it.

- Anyway, …Shikamaru-_san_, how come you were able to write this? Are you sure you weren't cheating?"

- _This getting more troublesome by the minute_. Just forget it, girl.

- Hah, like I could now! If you are indeed cheating, reporting you could earn me some better grades and…

_Man, his her grades all she's thinking about besides Sasuke? Wait… Sasuke_. The scowl present on Shikamaru's face diminished a little.

- You really should drop it, you know. Or else…

- Or else what? Sakura was really confident that the boy in front of her had nothing on her.

- I got a theory; do you know whose desk this is? he said pointing at the desk to his left.

- Of course I know. It's… Her heart skipped a beat. This is Sasuke-kun's desk.

The boy rolled his eyes before continuing:

- Let's say I move my head a little more to the left. I would in talking distance of the Uchiha, wouldn't I?

- …I don't see were you going with this.

- What if I told him something like this: "Sakura is better than you. She told me while we were working together that she was purposely holding out on her grades out of pity and the paper is proof of this." What do you think he'd do?

- You… you wouldn't!?

Of course he wouldn't, he wouldn't even dream of it. The probability that Sasuke would even pay enough attention to understand what the genin in training would tell him was abysmal. Not mentioning that his awesome ego would never permit him to believe that someone was better than him. In the end, no matter how you looked at it, this reeked of a poor bluff. Shikamaru was counting on one thing though: Sakura fanaticism towards Sasuke. It was the only weakness he could exploit. And it paid off: against all odds – and logic – She begged the boy in front of her not to tell anything to her prince charming providing she'd forget about this whole incident. The little genius was all too happy to escape another troublesome situation. He took the paper and put it in his pocket, planning to burn it later.

By that time, Iruka had entered the class.

- Hmm…? What are you doing here Sakura? Shikamaru, I'm not surprised, but you…

- Ah… we were just discussing the paper we had to do for yesterday.

- I see.

- Why aren't you surprised that Shikamaru is here?

- Well, it's kind of normal considering what kind of mother he has.

- Oh really?

She said that with a smile that the devil himself would envy. Shikamaru didn't like it one bit. The teacher went on to explain that Shikamaru's mom was kind of strict and was the only person to be able to make her lazy son do… well anything actually. When Sakura asked for the reason, the Chunnin simply replied that it ran in the family. The black haired pineapple had a rough idea how brainy the pink haired girl was. He knew for sure this tidbit of detail was enough for her that Shikamaru feared his mother. He didn't let that transpire though: he rested his head on his arms as usual, and tried to sleep as casually as possible. Soon after that, the class started. The black haired pineapple started to think about what Sakura could do with this information, but quickly disregarded it: it wouldn't do any good to worry about it anyway. It wasn't like he had anything she wanted or something like that, and they had already agreed on a mutual silence. Besides, it wasn't really the time to think about it: The genin exam was close. Very close.

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	6. Chap 6: End of the lazy days

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter 6: ****End of the lazy days**

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Disclaimer: I'm not Kishimoto, so… yeah that's about it.

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After the events of the last days, Shikamaru found that the days passed by abnormally fast. At first he had thought by some miracle that Iruka's class had become less boring. He came to the conclusion that it was something else when he inevitably fell into a deep slumber every time he tried to pay attention for more then five minutes. By looking around somewhat he found the answer written on the students' faces: It was stress. Everybody had started to worry about the upcoming exam, especially Naruto. So far, the blonde wondered how he was to accomplish being anything more than a dropout, as still couldn't do well in school. As much as he wanted to memorize the lessons, or concentrate, or perform a certain jutsu, it just couldn't work. Still, his resolve did not waver. His goal to become Hokage was huge; it was only normal that huge efforts were needed to achieve it.

Shikamaru was eyeing him from time to time when he wasn't sleeping in class. He didn't know why, but he really wanted Naruto to succeed. Was it the fact he wanted to be Hokage more than anyone else? The young genius didn't fool himself long: the only things he was interested in were things that could distract him. He probably thought that Naruto was good distraction; troublesome, but curiously amusing. Thinking like that wasn't going to help him though, and since helping him was in the list of "troublesome things", he quickly shrugged the thought away to return to his original train of thoughts. Stress seemed a plausible answer for the sudden notion of time passing faster that usual, but he couldn't comprehend what he was stressed about. Maybe he actually wanted to pass the exams for once. For that however, he would have to study hard and make a minimum of effort… Oh well, suddenly the aspect of another year at the academy didn't sound bad at all.

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Naruto sighed as he walked towards the familiar green hills. The graduation exam was coming soon, and it looked like he would fail it again. Luckily, this wasn't a written exam. All he had to do was to perform the task they'd want him to perform. Naruto proceeded to review what he had learned so far. _Well, my henge is alright._ A sly smile appeared on his face. _Hehehe... wait until they set their eyes on the new version I invented. I guess the only other jutsu they could ask for... I don't want to think about it..._

When he got to Shikamaru's cloud watching spot, he found him... reading? Could Shikamaru really be studying for the exam? Well, that was kind of normal afterall; everybody was making efforts in order to become a ninja. Shikamaru's atitude didn't change at all though; maybe he was simply catching up after class. That didn't sound like him at all though. He had to be sure. He leaned closer to read the letters. He didn't hear about any justu called "shogi" before. Wait a second, wasn't that the game he had played with those girls before!?

- What are you doing, idiot!?

- Shut up, idiot. Can't you see I'm reading?

- I can see that! **Why aren't you studying**!?

- Meh, too troublesome.

Shikamaru was given an angry look and Naruto walked off... right into Choji, almost bumping into him. After the Choji greeted his best friend, the two blonds sat down to talk. At first, it didn't really matter to the young genius, because they weren't interfering with his reading. As he put down his book to go back to cloud gazing however, he heard his named mentioned two or three times. He was curious, but he didn't mind; he knew that nothing that involved Naruto could stay secret for long. In fact, moments later, Naruto got up and walked straight to him, followed by Choji. He crouched next to Shikamaru, eyeing him until it became unbearable. To Naruto's surprise, it took a while, Shikamaru being very stubborn. Finally, he gave up, exasperated.

- What do you want Naruto?

- Do you want to be a ninja or not?

- Yeah... Your point?

- The graduation exam is coming soon.

- …So?

- So!? You'd better do something, dattebayo!

- Tch!

- Oi! Don't "tch" me, you bastard!

- Why should I listen to you, of all the people?

- What?

- You're the dead last of our class. If this keeps up, you won't even pass the graduation exam either; so why the heck should I listen to you?

Naruto tried to argue back, but couldn't. Shikamaru was right. How could he make all the people of Konoha acknowledge as a hokage if he couldn't even become a ninja? He lowered his head for about ten seconds, then quickly barked back, full of energy.

- So what? If this keeps up, I won't be the only one to fail!

- Humph! Let's make a deal then idiot. We both have to pass the genin exam.

- Cool with me! ...But what happens if I don't win?

- If you don't win… I'll never acknowledge you… as anything.

Both Choji and Naruto closely looked at him, to see if he was joking. He wasn't. Still searching the clouds, Shikamaru had a resolute expression on his face. Naruto slowly began to understand; the lazy bum still wasn't his friend. For that, he would have to become a genin. It was harsh; he actually thought he had made new friends. That only reinforced the determination he had to pass this exam. He stood up, with more determination in his face.

- Alright, I will! And if I do, you'll have to at least put some sort of effort from now on.

- Right, like _that'_ll ever happen.

- Oh, it will, unless you'd want a certain someone's mother to know about something.

- You… you can't!

- You're right Naruto said slyly. I couldn't. But I bet he could.

- Choji!

- Ah. Sorry Shikamaru, I pretty curious about what a serious you is about to do. Besides, from now on we'll be doing dangerous stuff we have to be ready.

He knew both of them were right, that didn't erase the uneasiness he had at the prospect of him actually having to study and work.

- Bah, Fine, Whatever, he finally said. Don't you have some studying to do?

Naruto took that as his cue and walked away. Shikamaru guessed that he wouldn't see the goofy kid around here at least until the graduation exam. If he felt somewhat guilty about it, he didn't admit it to himself. Taking care of other people's busyness meant trouble, he learned that. He simply tried to push the feeling away. Glancing over, he saw Choji looking at him with concern.

- What now?

- Don't you think that you were a little too hard on him?

- Please Choji, don't you start. It'll be fine as long as he passes the test, right?

The chubby blond thought about it for a while before nodding.

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Nobody knew how it happened, but it was a special year at the Konoha academy: everybody passed the exam. When all the graduates had entered the class for the last time, no one could tell which event surprised them the most: was it the fact that kiba and Choji had managed to get decent grades at the end? It could have been that even the dead last had received his Hitai-Ate. But the shocker that no one anticipated – even Shikamaru – was probably when Naruto made his way in the class with his brand new forehead protector when he didn't even participate in the graduation ceremony. Everybody and there mother thought he failed his exam. Even when Choji asked Shikamaru how it was possible, the super I.Q. genius had no answer to give. The only thing he did notice was that Naruto was somehow different. Somehow, between these last two days, Shikamaru felt like the blond dobe had grown.

Nobody would ever know what Naruto had to endure to receive his Hitai-Ate. Only he would remember the pain, the betrayal, the rage, but also the joy, the tears, the friendship. A lot happened that night, and he thought it would be wise not to mention about his new jutsu for the moment. The fact that it was forbidden and that it had almost cost him everything was reason enough to keep it a secret, but he knew that he had learned something important, something that defined him, something that would be helpful for the rest of his days. Today he was proud and ready to face any challenge.

Shikamaru eyed Naruto for a while then stared blankly at the chalkboard. The only reason he could come up for Naruto's graduation was simple: it had to be a miracle. Somehow, that didn't even surprise him. The dead last was the first one to figure out on his own about him. The only other people who knew were Choji, because he had told him, and Sakura, through an unfortunate series of events. Now a second wonder; one would be tempted to think that Naruto was a miracle worker. He didn't care though because he was genuinely glad for him, which was a feat for the lazy newly promoted genin: he never felt something for others with the exception of Choji. He realized something more important though, and a bittersweet smile appeared on his lips: _I guess my lazy days are over._

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**A/N****: I'll try to update more often. As usual reviews would be much appreciated.**

**BTW: There will be more action starting the next couple of chapters.**


	7. Chap 7: Team 8

**Chronicles of the Lazy-ass Ninja!**

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**Chapter ****7: Team 8**

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Disclaimer: I'm not Kishimoto, so… yeah that's about it.

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Shikamaru sat quietly at his desk with a dull expression on his face. He had thought that since he had passed the genin exam, he wouldn't have to come to school anymore. The photo session had thrown him off. He imagined he'd have a personal tutor from now on that would train him and teach him advanced jutsus. Apparently he was wrong because once again Iruka sensei was in front of them.

You may wonder why you're all gathered here. It's simple: you will all be separated in teams of three from now on.

He raised an eyebrow; _there goes that personal tutor theory_.

- Each team will be under the supervision of a jonin, who will serve as captain and mentor for each group. Now since balancing teams was an issue, I have personally handpicked each member of each team, so that they can perform to their utmost potential.

Shikamaru smelled a bluff here: there was no way to team up the "drop out four" that would bring out their potential. Probably because they hadn't shown any sing of potential to begin with. He simply hoped he would be with Choji somewhere.

The teams announced held little interest for the genius until he heard Naruto's name. He raised his head with minimal effort, and noticed the defeated look of Sakura next to him. Apparently, she was paired with him. When he saw that no other student in the room looked depressed, He dreaded that he was the third member. Not that he wouldn't enjoy teaming up with the dobe… no, actually, he wouldn't. Between the energetic idiot and the goody-two-shoes, Shikamaru already knew that team would be hell; the recent events only reinforcing his opinion. But when he looked at the class again, he noticed that the girls weren't particularly happy. He pondered for a second, to finally conclude that only one thing would make girls sad; he got the confirmation that Sasuke was indeed the last member of team seven by the exaggerated gloating of the pink head over Ino. Relief once again, but he feared, like last time, that it would be outlived

- Team 8 will consist of Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata, and Akimichi Choji.

Shikamaru nearly choked and shot a glance at his best friend, who was staring at him with the same distressful look. He was surprised he wasn't in the same team as Choji. He sincerely wondered how this new found team would take care of his friend. He wasn't troubled by Hinata: from what he had seen so far, she was reserved and polite. She didn't look like the kind of preson that would like to tease either, so he guessed Choji and the Hyuuga offspring could work decently well. Now Kiba was another case altogether. He was an incorrigible joker, and Shikamaru even recalled saving him two or three times of an enraged Choji the dog boy called fat behind his back. The genius hoped Choji wouldn't kill the member of the Inuzuka clan before he understood not to provoke him.

With that said, Shikamaru still didn't know in what team he was. And as he pondered, a thought came up; _This couldn't get…_ Shikamaru stopped this dangerous reflection at once. Though he really starting to think that not being with his best friend in a team wasn't that terrible - more like the end of the world really - in the far depths of his mind he knew he evil powers of that sentence. Maybe the fact that he mentally shut up averted the crisis; he could only hope. When he went back to pay attention to his homeroom teacher, he had already cited the members forming team 9.

- And now for the last team: team 10 will be made of Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru and Aburame Shino…

- I refuse!!

Everybody turned around to look at the only person to actually protest out loud against a teacher during the team assignments. The aspiring ninja even stood up, making him the target of every pair of eyes, and boy were they surprised. Even Shikamaru himself was amazed; for the culprit was none other than… himself! Everyone in the whole town knew of the Nara laziness, and it seemed Shikamaru was set to outclass all of his predecessors, so the fact that he not only argued, but stood up in protest had shocked everyone in the room, including the said Nara. But he shook that feeling of actually spending some energy thinking that they had to have seen this coming; of all of the people Shikamaru could've been teamed up with, Ino was the worst. She was loud, bossy, nagging… literally the second coming of his mother! Add to that that she was blonde – he actually wasn't that chauvinistic, but lacked a better word to define her personality –, fighting with Sakura for the position of number one Sasuke fan – that position never existed… it goes to show how far their obsession went – and actually though she had what she called "ultimate sexiness" and kept gloating over it 24/7 made one thing crystal clear for our genius: nothing good could ever come out of her. In fact, he theorized that she had the power to actually mentally debilitate anyone near her. He had proof in the pink head, who would rapidly dropped in IQ every time she had an argument with the blonde aspiring kunoichi.

- Pardon? Said Iruka, still shocked about the sudden outburst.

- It was already wrong of you to put me in a different team than Choji, but there's no way in hell I'll be paired up with that dumb blonde! He said pointing at the person, who was more than annoyed.

- Like anyone would want to be paired up with the second dead last.

But Shikamaru, not even paying attention to Ino to begin with, marched straight to the teacher and asked for a private talk. He unexpectedly accepted and they both stepped out of the rooms under the mixed curious murmurs of the class and the insults of the raging Yamanaka.

- Are you crazy sensei! Putting me in the same team as Ino!? Why, we'd probably be at each other's throats before even beginning the first mission; And what about Choji!? You know damn well we've never been apart; he's the only guy I actually get along with. And don't forget he'll kill Kiba as soon as he'll call him a fasto… which shouldn't take more than a day.

And, as on cue, the door to their class snapped open under the wait of the Inuzuka offspring, followed closely by a fulminating "big boned" blonde. Iruka quickly dashed to take care of the wounded boy, while Shikamaru tried to calm down his friend. Only succeeding after numerous attempts, and almost risking his life in the process. At least Kiba would remember about the power of words and their devastating results. The only problem was: for how long would that be? Eventually the commotion died, and Kiba's terrorized face told the student and teacher that they would be able to continue their discussion in relative peace. The chunnin replied:

- well, I know this is kind of annoying…

- It's troublesome.

- …Right. I know it is, but you haven't given me much of a choice here: I must put you in teams according to your abilities. Sadly, putting you in the same team would give you too much of a disadvantage. While in Taijutsu I know you two fair well, it is the academic and strategic aspect of your future that I'm worried about.

If Shikamaru had known his lazyness would bite him back in such a painful way, he would have probably had put more effort into his studies. That though in itself was enough to make him want to hurl: that doing something troublesome could lead into preventing something even more troublesome. Yet that didn't resolve his current problem. Searching franticly for an escape route, Shikamaru put his left hand in his pocket while scratching his head. He came in contact with a piece of paper. The Nara immediately recognized the paper for that team assignment he had from Sakura; he had been to lazy to even get rid of it. But now that paper was his way out of this mess.

- Well, sensei, if it's about that…

Shikamaru stopped when he saw the look of his teacher. Something wasn't right, yet he couldn't put his finger on it. But he went on anyway; it was all or nothing at this point.

- You don't have to worry about it.

- Really? And why would that be?

- Beacause… you know… that praiseworthy piece of work Sakura and I did? Well, it was all me actually.

For a moment, Iruka looked at him with scrutinizing eyes, like he was trying to figure out if the young boy in front of him was lying or not, then burst into a victorious and brief laugh. Seeing the utter confusion on his pupil's face he explained:

- So… you finally decided to confess, eh.

- Ah!? So you knew...

- … that Sakura wasn't the one responsible for that grade? …Or about that brilliant brain of yours? Of course I knew.

- Then why did you…?

- Because someone never stays after class when I summon him without his friend, the teacher said while poking the said someone. Besides, even if I told you I knew about it, that wouldn't have changed your behavior the slightest. Listen, I knew reorganizing the teams that way with you being with Ino would have you jumping and reacting. I didn't expect that much of a reaction though.

Shikamaru had to hand it to the teacher in front of him: he really knew his students. He took the bait like it was a soft pillow.

- Anyways this was a simple and friendly warning: past this point, acting as carefree and lazily as you've been doing will cost you your life at some point. Unfortunately, I won't team you up with Choji if you keep it up.

- Why?

- Because I don't want you to be responsible for your best friend's death.

The Pineapple head's eyes were wide opened after hearing that, he was slowly starting to understand what his teacher was trying to tell him.

- You understand that if I have to pair you up with Choji, you'll have to be the strategic help of the team. I figured you'd end up in that position sooner or later, but the way the teams are laid out right now, they will be able to survive until it is needed.

Shikamaru couldn't believe how much thought Iruka-sensei had put into this. As a shogi amateur, he was among the best in the class to understand the importance of a well balanced team. His new found respect for his teacher only kept increasing.

- I hope you don't feel too bad about that little prank.

- Nah, I'm good. Actually I'm glad it happened. I didn't think you were that good to tell the truth, but you got me there. I shouldn't have underestimated you.

- You're right, afterall I am a chuunin, he said with a grin that wasn't unlike Naruto's. Well, since you've learned your lesson, I guess team you'll be with Choji in team ten.

- Thanks.

Of course, the young Nara was bursting with joy inside, but he didn't want to act ecstatic in front of his teacher. Being humiliated once was enough for today. But the matter wasn't quite solved yet.

- Wait, does that mean I'm still stuck with Ino?

- Yep, you must have at least some kind of punishment for being too lazy all this time…

Everyone was surprised when the teacher announced the slight changes to the teams. It didn't matter much, but some argued that Shikamaru had received an unmerited favor. That quickly died down when the realized Ino was still in his team. Their rivalry was known around the academy, and frankly, nobody wanted to get between these two. Even Sakura couldn't anger Ino like Shikamaru could. The rest of the meeting went without further events of the sort, and soon everyone had soon left the room, anticipating their meeting with their future teacher.

Later, while Iruka was discussing the parings with his peers:

- Most of your teams are well thought out, but I still don't understand why you had to put that lazy Nara with Yamanaka and Akimichi.

- I trust they'll make a heck of a team in the future.

- But I still think…

- Wait a second, said another coworker. Just take a look at their names, Shinji.

- Hmm? I don't see what you…!? No… way! Iruka, never mind what I just said, you're a genius afterall.

The young chuunin receive all that praise while scratching his head. It was only days later that he would understand why they would say that, and boy was he surprised.

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**A/N****: I'll try to update more often. As usual reviews would be much appreciated. Still only two reviews…. u-u'**

**BTW: There will be more action starting the next couple of chapters.**


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